NEW YORK (AP) â Nine jurors were picked Wednesday on the second day of jury selection in Harvey Weinsteinâs #MeToo rape retrial.
At the same time, the disgraced movie mogulâs lawyers asked a judge to allow him to spend his nights at a New York City hospital instead of jail for the duration of the trial, citing his many health issues including cancer and problems walking that require the use of a wheelchair to get in and out of court.
The jurors â five women and four men â were picked from a group of 25 prospective jurors who spent the past two days answering questions from prosecutors and Weinsteinâs lawyers to gauge their ability to be impartial. They are the first jurors picked after none were chosen on Tuesday.
Jury selection will resume Thursday with a fresh group of about 80 prospective jurors to begin the screening process anew. Judge Curtis Farber has said a total of 12 jurors and six alternates will be picked.
The prosecution and defense each used seven of their allotted 15 peremptory challenges to reject potential jurors on Wednesday, leaving eight per side.
Two other candidates were removed from consideration by the judge. One had expressed dismay about the justice system and complained that wealthy people avoid culpability for wrongdoing. Another initially indicated he could be fair but then returned to the courtroom and said he didnât think he could.
âDefense counsel asked my reaction to the defendantâs name and the first word that came in my head was âpig,ââ said the man, who works as an investment banker. âAnd I apologize, but I feel a great sense of responsibility as a citizen and I take this stuff seriously.â
Weinstein, 73, has pleaded not guilty and denies raping or sexually assaulting anyone.
He leaned back in his wheelchair, peering at prospective jurors as they answered questions that touched on everything from their impressions of #MeToo â a movement spawned by scores of allegations in 2017 against the ex-studio boss â to what they like to do in their spare time.
An accounting consultant rejected by the prosecution said he had ânegative feelings" about the movement because his high school classmates had been wrongly accused of sexual assault. A lawyer who works in cryptocurrency compliance countered that "not enough has been doneâ as a result of #MeToo. She was rejected by Weinsteinâs side.
In seeking to relocate Weinstein for the trial, his lawyers argued that his stay at the cityâs notorious Rikers Island jail complex is exacerbating his health issues and that heâd be better off in the prison ward at Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan. Weinstein has been back and forth numerous times to Bellevue in recent months for treatment of various maladies.
The Oscar-winning producer has numerous health conditions, including chronic myeloid leukemia, heart issues, diabetes, sleep apnea and sciatica. A recent tongue infection was misdiagnosed at Rikers, requiring that Weinstein be hospitalized, and he has gained nearly 20 pounds (9 kilograms) in the past month, his lawyer Imran Ansari said.
Weinstein's lawyers against the city in November, alleging he was receiving substandard medical treatment in unhygienic conditions at Rikers. The claim, which seeks $5 million in damages, argues that Weinstein has been returned to Rikers each time before fully recovering at the hospital.
âBecause of this mistreatment, he has been worn down considerably health wise, and now faces the stress of trial in this condition, which may very well lead to serious health complications, even death,â Ansari said Wednesday in a statement.
Rikers has faced growing scrutiny for its mistreatment of detainees and dangerous conditions. Last year, a judge cleared the way for a possible federal takeover, finding inmates were in âunconstitutional danger.â
Farber has yet to rule on the transfer request, and the issue wasn't discussed in court Wednesday.
Weinstein is being tried again after New Yorkâs highest court last year and 23-year prison sentence, finding his trial had been tainted by improper rulings and prejudicial testimony.
He is being retried on two charges. Heâs accused of raping an aspiring actor in a Manhattan hotel room in 2013 and a criminal sex act by forcing oral sex on a movie and TV production assistant in 2006.
He is also charged with another count of criminal sex act based on an allegation from a woman who was not a part of the original trial. That woman, who has asked not to be named publicly, alleges that Weinstein forced oral sex on her at a Manhattan hotel.
